Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Chief Government Whip raised a point of order about his ability to hear proceedings, and comments have also been made by others about this. I wish to indicate two things. I have emphasised the first, which is that there is generally too much noise in the chamber both to my left and to my right. The second is that, after observing proceedings since that time, I realised that it is difficult to hear people at the dispatch box when they are not speaking directly into the microphone. Whilst I emphasise both in the asking of questions and in their answering that remarks be relayed through the chair, as the standing orders require, it would assist the chair, given the directional nature of the microphones, if remarks were made to the microphone. I do not wish to pick on the Minister for Defence Science and Personnel but he best illustrated this when he drifted around and away from speaking into the microphone. Even with his voice it was a little hard to hear him when he was not speaking into the microphone.